


Room to Breathe

by starkintern



Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Gen, Hurt Tony Stark, Hurt/Comfort, Irondad, Nightmares, Platonic Cuddling, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, spiderson
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-08
Updated: 2018-12-08
Packaged: 2019-09-14 12:55:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,528
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16913241
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/starkintern/pseuds/starkintern
Summary: Tony has a nightmare about losing the kid he thought of as a son and dying alone in space. Thankfully, said kid is there to help him.[Based off of events from the Avengers: Endgame trailer.]





	Room to Breathe

**Author's Note:**

> they may cuddle, but this is NOT starker. this is purely parental and platonic.  
> also, the avengers 4 trailer killed me send Help

Tony woke up with a strangled scream erupting from his throat. 

He stumbled up from his seat, nearly tripping over himself in the process, sweat dripping down his forehead. His heart raced painfully against his chest and he barely registered his surroundings, his mind fully focused on one thing: fear. He had to get out, he had to run, he had to do something; Tony felt like screaming all over again. However, before he could, something stopped him. 

“Mr. Stark? Are you okay?” A worried voice behind him caused Tony to whip around, his hand extended with palm pressed forward, as if his gauntlet was around his arm, a snarl curling across his lips. Tony didn’t realize that his armor was nowhere near him. As he took in the sight in front of him, he didn’t expect to come nearly face-to-face with a confused teenager, the same confused teenager Tony had been crying over for what felt like years. 

“Whoa, it’s okay, it’s just me. Peter Parker. Spider-Man. Uh, what else do you know me by? Underoos? Kid?” Peter eyed Tony nervously, yet there was no fear in his eyes, simply concern. 

“You…you died.” Tony lamely choked out, his breathing quickening at the memory of the teen crumbling to dust in his arms, the only words flowing out of his mouth being pleas for Tony to save him, to help him, to _do something._

“Died? But I-”

“You died, you’re dust, I watched you turn to dust, _your ashes are on my hands._ ” Tony spat, frustration bubbling in his chest as hot tears prickled in the corners of his eyes, blurring his vision. He felt himself sinking to the ground, his hands coming to hug himself tightly, his nails digging into his skin. “I was supposed to protect you. I - I don’t know what’s happening, I just lost you, you were begging me not to go but I couldn’t help you – God, I’m so sorry. I’m so, so, sorry." 

“Mr. Stark, you had a nightmare. I’m okay, we’re okay.” Peter spoke gently as he knelt down in front of Tony, placing a gentle hand on the mechanic’s trembling shoulder. When Tony didn’t react adversely to the touch, he moved his hand down his arm and took his hand into his, offering him a reassuring squeeze. “See? Not dusty at all.” 

The second part of Tony’s dream came rushing back to him. “Where are we?” He asked, fearing the worst. When Peter just simply claimed that they were “home”, Tony’s mind took at as enough of an answer and he squeezed his eyes shut, focusing on the weight of Peter’s hand in his. He had no idea how long they sat there like that but in all honesty, Tony could have sat there forever. 

“Are you going to have a panic attack?” Peter asked, keeping his voice soft. “Should we stay down here?” 

Tony reluctantly opened his eyes and sucked in a shaky breath, his chest squeezing uncomfortably. However, he forced himself to focus on Peter’s face, which was illuminated through the faint moonlight streaming through the windows. Small strands of curly, messy brown hair were in the kid’s eyes and Tony, without thinking, reached forward and brushed them aside. “No, I’m stable enough.” 

Peter’s lips curled into a smile. “Good. ‘Cause the couch is a much better place for a real hug. Not just an ‘I’m grabbing the door for you’ hug.” 

He helped Tony up to his feet, helping hold the man up when he stumbled in his steps. Together, they slowly made their way towards the couch and Peter waited until Tony sunk down into the cushions before he sat down next to him. There was no shy hesitance between them as Peter wrapped his arms around the upper half of Tony’s body, gently tugging him closer until the man’s head rested on his chest. Tony responded quickly with curling his arms around Peter’s waist, letting out a small laugh as he felt Peter’s chin rest on the top of his head. 

“Stealing my cuddle techniques, huh? Am I really that good?” Tony joked, remembering how whenever Peter was upset or hurt, they would often be in the same position, yet Tony would always be the one to rest his head on Peter’s. 

“Oh c’mon, you’re just mad that I’m better at it.” Peter teased. 

Tony went silent and relished in how _solid_ Peter felt. Peter was not falling to pieces in his arms, he was not begging him to stay, he was whole and would remain whole. It almost made him feel like bursting into tears all over again. This was his kid. They were not biologically related but Tony still felt a sense of pride, protectiveness, and warmth whenever he looked at Peter and if that wasn't purely parental, then he wasn't sure what else it could be. Tony's shoulders relaxed as he fondly got lost in his own thoughts, none of them terrifying or self-depreciating for once. Peter was here, everything was okay.

“What was the nightmare about?” 

The question caught Tony off guard. He tensed, teeth clenching, and his grip on Peter subconsciously tightened. He remembered isolation, despair, impending doom, and how cold it was. It was so, so, cold. Tony sagged more against Peter’s side, taking a moment to ground himself using the warmth from Peter’s arms around him before responding slowly, carefully, “I lost you. I couldn’t stop it from taking you. I thought that if I told you that you were okay, then it would come to fruition. I’m so sorry, Peter. I didn’t know how to help. Then I was all alone.” A pause. “I tried going home after…I just wanted to see if I can bring you back. I ran out of supplies, and I was alone.” 

“You’re not alone, Mr. Stark. You have Pepper, Rhodey, and Happy.” Peter firmly listed and before Tony was able to interrupt, he quietly added, “You also have me. I’m here. You don’t have to apologize, Mr. Stark. I’m glad you were there, I would have been a lot more scared if you weren’t. Man, for someone so short, you have a lot of self-blame inside of you, I feel like you need to let some of that go.” 

“Thanks, Dr. Parker.” Tony snorted, ignoring the comment Peter made about his height. “When’s my next therapy session with you? Are we going to go over my ego next?” 

“No need to, we already know that you’re an ego with legs.” 

Tony rolled his eyes, although small bouts of laughter escaped his mouth. His earlier panic was forgotten and for a moment, Tony allowed himself to feel _okay._ He and Peter were just relaxing on the couch after a long day in the workshop. Peter’s backpack was probably carelessly tossed somewhere around the room, notebooks and various textbooks spilling out of it. Happy was probably going to text Tony soon about him missing a meeting due to the fact that he spent so much time with Peter. Pepper was going to scold them about all of the empty pizza boxes strewn about the room, claiming that it was in no way good for their health, while Tony and Peter would just point at each other accusingly, grins on their faces, and swear that the other ate all that pizza. Pepper would then snitch on him to Aunt May, who would chew him out while Peter would stand in the background, snickering with his hand clasped over his mouth. 

Whenever Tony threatened Peter with taking away his suit after situations like those, Peter would always give him a shit-eating grin and claim that he loved him too much to do that. Tony always refused it but, in the end, he would always relent and eventually agree. 

“You should get some sleep, Mr. Stark. Geez, how long as it even been? Your eyebags may be Gucci but that doesn’t mean that they look pretty. Anyways, Pepper said you should sleep more, and I agree.” Peter’s voice brought Tony out of his thoughts. 

“First of all, rude. Second of all, Armani is a better brand.” Tony felt Peter let out a small laugh at his words, the sound pure music to his ears. Both of them quieted down for a moment, lost in their own thoughts, before Tony murmured so quietly that if they weren’t holding each other so tightly it would have been incredibly difficult to hear, “Will you stay?” 

Peter was strangely silent, and Tony looked up at him in question only to be met with a comforting smile, yet there was an unidentifiable cloudiness in Peter’s eyes. “Always.” 

Tony mirrored the smile and there was a brief moment of understanding between them, unspoken yet still there. He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, listening to the faint thumping of Peter’s heartbeat. A warm feeling spread through his chest, warming his aching limbs. He felt Peter squeeze him against his body tighter and a rare smile crossed his face. 

“Thank you, Peter.”

* * *

Tony, alone in an empty, cold, and dark spaceship, let go with a smile on his face.

**Author's Note:**

> tony held peter as he died. i just think it’s only fair that peter returns the favor and holds him back.  
> \+ i hope you enjoyed it! i usually don't write this little but i wanted it to be short, bittersweet, and to the point. as always, comments & kudos are appreciated !!!


End file.
